BLUFF & INVERCARGILL

TUESDAY 3rd MAY

  I took off at 9.00am and again had trouble with the satnav.  It didn't recognise Tay Street in Invercargill, although it was preset to Otago as the "City".  Not knowing which state Invercargill is situated in, meant that I couldn't reset this.  Having got to said place I know know that it is in the Southlands.  Anyway I decided to rely on road signs to get me to Invercargill and try and find Tay Street when I got there.  Route 1 heading southwards was what was wanted.  Having finished of the remnants of my Pino Grigio that I had kept frozen in my sealed cup last night, I made coffee that I poured into the cup for the journey.  I reached Invercargill in about two and a half hours and coming into town I found I was on Tay Street and soon passed no 633, and so knew instantly where the Monarch Motel was located.

  I drove on to Bluff about 25Km further on.  The town was founded by James Spencer who landed there in 1824.  It was originally called the Mount, followed by Old Man's Bluff, the term 'old man' comes from the Celtic meaning High Rock.  The name was subsequently abreviatted to 'Bluff'.  It is called 'Motupohue' in Maori .  In 1856 the name was changed to Campbelltown, but reverted to Bluff on 1st March 1917.  I drove down to Stirling Point, so named after Captain William Stirling, and was originally a whaling station established by Johnny Jones in 1836.  The area houses Land's End - a B&B and cafe as well as the Drunken Sailor Cafe.  But its most famous landmark is the signpost giving directions and distances to the Equator (5133), London (18958), Sydney (2000), New York (15008), Stewart Island (35) as well as several other places including Dog Island, Wellington and Kumagaya.  Originally there were six signs made in timber (around 1960) but after continuous vandalism they were replaced by metal ones with the supporting pole cemented into the ground.

  I popped into the Drunken Sailor for lunch and opted for the Mussels in garlic butter sauce with salad and bread.  Well the mussell shells were about 4" long - absolutely ginormous and there must have been 12 - 15 of them!  I had apple crumble with cream and ice cream, all washed down by a pot of local New Zealand Speight's beer.  After this massive feed, I thought I should get some exercise so I took the path to Observation Point.  After about 35 minutes I came across a signpost that showed I wasn't yet half way there.

I had passed Dog Island, which houses the tallest lighthouse in New Zealand, and caught sight of Stewart Island in the dim distance (too far away to warrant a photo).  I had a change of plan.  I walked back to the car and bade farewell to Sterling Point.

I had noticed that there had been a sign for Bluff Point on the other side of town, and sure enough there was a road leading up to the 867ft high Bluff Point.  It is a superb vantage point, and the highest one along this part of the coast, and as such has been a vital observation post since the 19th century.  It is also allegedly the place of burial for former Maori leaders.

During the war the Point housed two Coastal Defence (radar) installations for use by the New Zealand Navy to control the Foveaux Strait. It has remained an important communications site.

  Upon completing my visit to Bluff Point - I decided against walking down to Observation Point, it looked a mighty steep descend and what's more a jolly steep ascent on the return journey, I returned to Invercargill.  It looks on the map as though Observation Point is the southernmost tip of the New Zealand mainland, but because the island does not run north to south, this honour falls to Stope Point some 30KM to the east.

  I checked into the motel, got a street map of the town, and got some advice on where to go from the owner, and drove off to town.  The Water Works Tower is one of the architectural highlights.

I ran out of daylight hours to visit the botanical gardens, but I managed to explore Tay Street, Dee Street and Elk Street, and in my travels found a pawn shop where I picked up a double Spotnik's CD, a double Nina Simone and a best of Thin Lizzie, all for the princely sum of £8.00.  The other point of interest was the local theatre building.

  On the way back I bought some provisions, as well as topping the car up with petrol.  I also purchased some Energizer Lithium batteries for my camera which claim to last for up to 680 photos - we shall see.  After yesterday's stunning news about the demise of Osama bin Laden, there was news today of a tornado striking the North Island, with amazingly only one death.